Video is invisible: digital censorship is being discussed in Belarus
The YouTube administration has deleted several major Belarusian state-owned channels in recent days. The media started creating duplicates, but these pages are also being eliminated. In this regard, there was talk of a violation of freedom of speech in the country, and a discussion about retaliatory blocking of the video hosting service intensified. Read more about the situation in the Izvestia article.
What happened
In early April, the YouTube video hosting administration deleted the accounts of the largest Belarusian media resources: BelTA news agency and ONT and STV TV channels. When you try to open their pages, a standard picture appears on the screen and an inscription stating that the blocking occurred due to some violations of the rules of the platform.
The affected media began to develop new channels to replace the lost ones, but they did not last long either. For example, on April 8, YouTube eliminated the second STV account. On TV, the incident was called an attack on freedom of speech and invited viewers to switch to alternative venues.
It is important that all the channels were very popular. In particular, BelTA and STV each had 2.3 million subscribers at the time of the deletion, ONT surpassed the 1.4 million mark. "YouTube lost ideologically and informationally to our colleagues. They lost their nerve and pulled the switch. Hysteria and helplessness," the Belarusian Union of Journalists said in a statement.
At the same time, the video hosting administration did not say anything about the reasons for its decision. It is believed that the reason could be a complaint by opposition activist Stanislav Ivashkevich. He reported that in one of the programs on STV, his personal data was disclosed and allegedly "there were calls for violence." But even so, it is unclear why two more channels were affected.
Irina Akulovich, General Director of the BelTA News Agency
According to another version, we are talking about some kind of sanctions, but there are many questions here. Officially, none of the affected media outlets are on the sanctions lists, although some executives are. In 2021, the head of ONT, Marat Markov, was placed under restrictions, and in 2024, BelTA CEO Irina Akulovich. However, all these decisions have been known for a long time, previously YouTube had no questions in this regard.
Moreover, the US administration recently lifted sanctions against the Ministry of Finance of Belarus. Previously, it was precisely these restrictions that explained the lack of monetization of state media resources on the video hosting site. Now it turns out that after the lifting of sanctions, the platform not only did not return the opportunity to earn money for the media, but also eliminated the channels themselves.
What will happen next
After the incident in Minsk, there was talk of retaliatory blocking of the American service. The Belarusian Ministry of Information reported that it considers the hosting decision to be an unfriendly and groundless step. It is emphasized that the authorities have the right to "take the necessary response measures."
The country's Foreign Ministry called the incident a gross violation of international law. "The blatant silence of international structures attracts attention. Those of them who traditionally promptly and loudly declare any, even the most controversial, cases of "restriction of freedom of speech" in countries they dislike, this time defiantly remain silent," the publication of the department says.
The head of the Belarusian Union of Journalists, Andrei Krivosheev, has declared an act of Belarusophobia, informational vandalism and politically motivated censorship. He called on members of Parliament and members of the Government to protect the rights and interests of journalists.
A vote on the possible blocking of the American platform was launched in one of the popular Belarusian Telegram channels, 57% supported this decision. Ivan Eismont, Chairman of Belteleradiocompany, also spoke on the topic. According to him, as a media manager, he is interested in posting content and increasing views on YouTube, but now believes that video hosting should be completely blocked "if they work according to such "rules".
There are other voices, however. For example, a well-known pro-government speaker, MP Alexander Shpakovsky called for not making hasty decisions, saying that the entire YouTube should not be touched, it is enough to impose restrictions on individual extremist channels. "At the same time, it is advisable for Gosam to continue working in this space," he stressed.
In fact, the issue is not the easiest for the Belarusian authorities. On the one hand, blocking YouTube may worsen the negotiating background in the dialogue with Washington. It is known that US President Donald Trump is actively lobbying for the interests of American corporations in the international arena. Last summer, he attacked Brussels when the European Commission issued a fine to Google, which owns YouTube.
In September, Trump gathered the heads of major IT structures at a dinner party at the White House, the event was attended by Google CEO Sundar Pichai and Sergey Brin, among others. The meeting then took place in a warm atmosphere, it was reported that the interlocutors promised each other assistance in various matters. In such circumstances, the blocking of YouTube by Minsk may worsen relations with the United States.
US President Donald Trump at a dinner at the White House with the heads of major technology companies. Sergey Brin and Sundar Pichai are in the foreground. September 4, 2025
On the other hand, there are internal political dangers. The American video hosting service is used by many Belarusians who are far from geopolitical battles and watch videos on a variety of topics, from comedy shows to cooking recipes. Blocking may encourage citizens to look for ways to circumvent restrictions.
Finally, Minsk simply does not have a full-fledged alternative yet. In 2024, the country opened its own Videobel video platform, but there are no likes, comments or user content, only materials from state TV channels are hosted on the site. Probably, the authorities could refine the service or refocus on Russian sites, but this is not a quick matter.
What the experts say
The West seeks to establish strict information censorship, says Vladimir Shapovalov, a Russian political scientist and deputy director of the Institute of History and Politics at Moscow State University. The actions against the Belarusian media are a continuation of the struggle that has affected Russian resources.
— Why is this happening? The West is not ready to accept an alternative point of view, and is losing the competition even on its own platforms. The Soviet authorities once pursued a similar policy, but now we have switched places: we are for freedom, the vaunted EU and the USA are for censorship," the expert notes.
The blocking of channels has become a kind of recognition for journalists, believes Belarusian political scientist Alexei Dzermant. The media of Belarus gained sufficient weight in the information space and had millions of subscribers.
— They influenced not only our internal agenda, but also the entire Russian-speaking space. This is the main reason for the blockage. I also note the duplicitous position of the Americans — they negotiate with one hand, and take such discriminatory measures with the other," the editorial interlocutor argues.
However, it is unlikely that YouTube will be blocked in Belarus in response, he believes, expecting a restrained reaction from the authorities.
— Other Belarusian media outlets continue to work on this platform. I believe that we will see targeted measures of influence, for example, the prohibition of certain extremist channels on the territory of our country. The general trend is negative, but I don't expect any drastic decisions yet," the expert concludes.
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